RIP Fabulous Moolah, Age 84

Deepest condolences to friends, family and fans of an all-time WWE Women's legend, Fabulous Moolah, who has passed away at age 84 today in South Carolina.

"WWE is saddened by the passing of Lillian Ellison, who was known to sports-entertainment fans as Hall of Famer Fabulous Moolah. She passed away last night in Columbia, S.C.

In the world of women’s wrestling, there will always be one irrefutable legend that stands head and shoulders above the rest: The Fabulous Moolah. She was the longest reigning champion in the history of her chosen sport, or any sport for that matter. And with more than 50 years in the business to her credit, she established a legacy that will never be forgotten, making her name synonymous with female wrestling."

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More about the Fabulous Moolah's wrestling career:

Moolah's real name was Lillian Ellison, born July 22, 1923 in Columbia, South Carolina. She also went by the ring names Slave Girl Moolah and Spiderlady before Fabulous Moolah stuck. Her mother passed early on, and by age 10 Moolah was idolizing Mildred Burke, a female wrestler who was part of local wrestling shows that Moolah's father took her to. Moolah eventually started to train and wrestled in the 1940's under Billy Wolfe, who was Burke's husband and a wrestling promoter. Moolah won a 13 woman battle royal in 1956 to capture the NWA Women's title and she became the dominant female wrestler of the 1960's. In 1983 Vince McMahon brought Moolah into his expanding WWF company along with her NWA Women's World Title as well. She became the WWF's Women champion of the time, and in 1984 was defeated by Wendi Richter, a beautiful young female wrestle who represented Cyndi Lauper. Moolah was backed by Captain Lou Albano in the match which was televised on MTV.

In 1984-85 Moolah trained another up and coming wrestler, Leilani Kai, who ended up beating Wendi Richter for the Women's title. After Richter regained her title back, Moolah donned a mask to become the "Spider Lady" and she reclaimed the Women's belt in 1985 at a controversial match. Moolah held the Women's title before losing it in 1987 to another late legendary female of the WWF, Sherri Martel.

Moolah made appearances in the WWE over the years following her retirement from the ring. She was often seen in skits and other situations with Mae Young, her good friend and wrestling legend. She received an RKO in the ring from Randy Orton after her 80th birthday. She is also part of the 2004 film "Lipstick and Dynamite" which is a documentary about the women wrestlers from the 1950s era. Moolah's last WWE appearance was during the SummerSlam Pay Per view several months ago, during a backstage skit involving her, Mae Young, William Regal and Vince McMahon. (info source: Wikipedia.com)

For more commentary on Moolah please see the following from WWE.com:

Mae Young remembers Moolah

Howard Finkel remembers Moolah.